Dean Smith (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

It is a great privilege to be able to participate in this debate today. My Western Australian colleague Senator Back will follow me and I understand that my other Western Australian Senate colleague Senator Eggleston will also follow me. Let's be clear: on 5 April, Western Australians should not reward Labor and they should not reward the Australian Greens for the handbrake they are putting on the Western Australian economy and the handbrake they are putting on the future livelihoods of Western Australians and their families.

I am pleased to participate in the debate on this motion brought before the Senate this afternoon by Senator Siewert. The Western Australian Senate election rerun on 5 April is a historic occasion in a number of important respects. The most historic element of this is that, as a result of the upcoming ballot, the Australian Labor Party has discovered that there is a place known as Western Australia. Not in my life so far have I heard so much talk from members of the Australian Labor Party about my home state, Western Australia, as I have in the parliament in the last week. Displaying all zealotry that is characteristic of recent converts, Labor senators seem to be engaged in an internal competition of sorts. There might be a prize being offered by the Labor whip for which Labor senators can get Western Australia recorded in the Hansard on the most occasions this particular week. I see Senator Sterle sitting across from me and he will make a mighty effort, I am sure. It is just unfortunate for them that enthusiasm and understanding are not the same thing, because if Labor and the Australian Greens senators think that coming in this place and only now talking about Western Australia, and talking about Western Australia in the next few weeks leading up to 5 April, is fooling voters in Western Australia they have another think coming.

Labor and the Australian Greens had six years—one, two, three, four, five, six—including three years—one, two, three—working in very close partnership to deliver for Western Australia. Let us look at the record of what was actually delivered. First there was the carbon tax—a tax that cost the Western Australian economy $626 million in 2012-13 and failed to deliver any tangible environmental benefits. It is a tax that is still supported in this place by senators from the Labor Party and the Australian Greens. They are still voting together to prevent the coalition's efforts to repeal the carbon tax. This is their idea of standing up for Western Australia. This is a strange way of standing up for Western Australia. What makes this attitude especially puzzling to me, especially in relation to the Australian Labor Party, is that they can hardly argue that the Abbott government do not have a mandate to repeal the carbon tax. We know that Labor MPs understand that their carbon tax was a key factor in their collapse and the collapse of the previous Labor government. Some of the them were even smart enough to try and do something about it.

Let us go back to the middle of 2012 to an article in the Sunday Herald Sun. Its headline reads: 'Carbon tax has Labor MPs rattled'. In that story written by Samantha Maiden, it says:

PRIME Minister Julia Gillard faces backbench unrest about the carbon tax, with sceptics quietly planning to push for changes to the tax - or the leadership.

The story goes on to quote an unnamed Labor MP saying:

I just hate the carbon tax. Never wanted it …

We might have a few like-minded sceptics coming out. If I had my way we wouldn't be having a carbon tax …

So there were people in the then government who were acutely aware that this policy was a flop and a failure and it was going down badly in the electorate. But then, in the very same article, the real power within the Labor Party is revealed. It goes on to say:

Australian Workers Union president Bill Ludwig said there was little prospect of change to the carbon tax.

"Nothing will happen. It's set in stone. It will all be alright, don't worry about it," he said.

So there we have the Australian Workers Union leading the cheer squad for a tax that destroys jobs. Is it any wonder that union membership in this country continues to fall? 'Why are the views of the Australian Workers Union relevant to this issue?' you might ask. It is worth thinking about this for a particular moment. Who else in this place might owe a favour or two, indeed owe their political career, to the Australian Workers Union? I can see Senator Mason mulling over the question now. Let me help you, Senator Mason. It might actually be the current Leader of the Opposition, the member for Maribyrnong, Mr Shorten. The Leader of the Opposition built his public profile as the secretary of the Australian Workers Union. He used that union support and its numbers to gain preselection in his seat when he was first elected in 2007. The current secretary of the Australian Workers Union is Paul Howes—it will not come as a surprise to those on the other side of the chamber—who is known to many Australians for his key role in the 2010 coup that cut down Kevin Rudd and delivered the prime ministership to Julia Gillard. Of course, we all know that Mr Shorten was also heavily involved in that operation. It was an AWU backed effort.